Michigan State University Athletics
Michigan State University
NCAA Heats
Spartans Start Strong at NCAA Championships
5/30/2008 12:00:00 AM | Women's Rowing
May 30, 2008
Updated Heat Sheet with Saturday Lane Assignments
NCAA Rowing Photo Gallery (updated each day after racing)
Rancho Cordova, CA - Michigan State kicked off action at the 2008 NCAA Regatta on Friday morning with some strong results, posting second-place finishes in the varsity eight and varsity four races and a fourth-place finish in the opening heat for the second varsity eight. Racing resumes for all three boats on Saturday morning, but some strong performances on the opening afternoon has optimism high in the Green and White camp.
Complete Friday Racing Results/Live Results
"Success at this championship is about three straight days of good performances, and hopefully your best day is the last," noted head coach Matt Weise. "Today, we put ourselves in a very good position for tomorrow with all of our boats. We had a little trouble with some equipment in the varsity boat, so their finish is more impressive, considering the circumstance."
The Spartans started off the day in fine fashion - set up in lane two for the first race of the regatta, MSU took a lead after the first 500, but were only four-tenths of a second ahead of Yale at that first marker buoy. The heat was a tight one, as all six boats still had contact as they raced through the second 500 meters. Yale took the lead before the halfway point, with MSU a half a second back and Wisconsin an additional three seats. The Spartans fell off a bit in the third 500 - their split time in that segment was fifth of the six boats - but made a strong move in the sprint to push ahead of Wisconsin and take second in the heat to Yale. The Bulldogs time was 6:25.6, followed by the Spartans in a time of 6:27.25. Harvard made the push in the final 500 as well, and moved ahead of Wisconsin in the sprint (6:27.56) to claim the third and final spot to advance directly into the Saturday semifinals. The Badgers, USC, and Ohio State will all race in the Friday afternoon repechage for a spot in the Saturday semis.
The varsity boat had an issue with its "cox box" - the communication system throughout the rowing shell that allows all rowers to hear the communication from the coxswain throughout the race. Receiving instruction from coxswain Katie Bitz only intermittently throughout the heat, the V8 kept its composure and put together a strong race for its top-two finish.
The second varsity had a little tougher go, but had a great final stretch to place just eight-hundreths of a second out of third place. MSU was in fifth after the first 500, but all boats had contact. Ohio State was the pacesetter, as the Buckeyes had a three-quarter length lead at the 500 meter mark, followed by Tennessee and Cal neck-and-neck, and MSU just two seats off that pace. The Spartans fell to fifth in the third 500, but made a valiant final push in the final sprint. MSU made up several seats and nearly caught Tennessee in the sprint, crossing the line in a time of 6:53.38, just :00.08 behind the Lady Vols. Ohio State was clocked at 6:44.87, and Cal was second at 6:49.17.
MSU's four, one of its top entries all season, raced to a second-place finish in their race, the final heat for Spartan rowers on Friday. It started out as a neck-and-neck contest between Michigan State and Brown; the two crews exchanged slight leads throughout the opening 1000 meters, with the Spartans holding the slight lead at both the 500 and 1000 meter marks - both by under three-tenths of a second. In the third 500, Virginia made a major move that allowed the Cavaliers to eclipse both leading crews; their 1:55.28 split time in the third 500 was four seconds better than any other boat in the race. With the heat winner advancing directly to Sunday's grand final, the Spartans found another gear to go pull-for-pull with UVA in the final 500, posting the second-best split time of the group (1:55.52). MSU put some distance between themselves and the Bears, crossing the finish line in a time of 7:31.83, a half-length ahead of Brown. UVA's winning time was 7:27.07.
Saturday's racing begins at 8 am PST, with the two semifinal heats for the varsity eight boats. The fours and second eights will follow, with the final Division I race of the day at 9 am PST. Fans can watch all the races through the CSTV All-Access player at http://all-access.cstv.com/cstv/player/player.html?code=ncaa; Complete results from Friday's racing (as well as live race updates after every 500 meters) are also available at http://jamcotimes.com/2008/ncaaw/index.htm#SCHEDULE
Players Mentioned
